March 23, 2005

By Rebecca Gladden

According to a press release issued before Sunday's Golden Corral 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, John Michael Montgomery's performance of the national anthem would "cap off" a patriotic pre-race demonstration.

Ironic wording, since Montgomery neglected to take his cap off during the anthem.

Not only did he wear a cowboy hat throughout his performance, but his shaky, off-key rendition of the song was a disgrace. As soon as Montgomery sounded his final tuneless note, internet message boards and mailing lists lit up with harsh criticism, not only of the singer, but of those who chose him for the show.

Speculation ran rampant Sunday that Montgomery was intoxicated. Along with missing the melody all together, he reportedly had to read the words to the anthem from the back of his VIP pass. Whether or not this is true is beside the point; his performance - described by many fans as a "butchering" of the song - reeked of disrespect.

At a time when our nation has thousands of troops in harm's way, that is unacceptable. Our national anthem, our service men and women, and the sport's fans deserve better.

After Sunday, they also deserve an apology.

While pre-race shows are the purview of individual track owners, NASCAR has had a proud history of patriotism. To its credit, the Atlanta pre-race show featured participants from the Army, Navy and Air Force. The pace car arrived inside an MH-47 Chinook helicopter from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. The flyover was performed by a B-1 Bomber. Week after week, several NASCAR Busch and Cup teams proudly display the names and emblems of the military branches that sponsor them.

But when it comes to the national anthem, the powers-that-be favor pop stars over patriotism, and the decision often backfires. Montgomery's performance was not the first to strike a sour note, although overall his was the worst in recent memory.

Almost everyone has the potential to sound like a good singer in the recording studio, where highly sensitive equipment can enhance one's voice, edit mistakes, splice the good notes together, and provide rich back-up music. But singing the Star-Spangled Banner live and a cappella is a challenge for the most gifted pop star, let alone one who may not be in full command of his senses.

Rather than risk further ignominy, I respectfully suggest that racetrack executives forget about pop singers, hip-hop performers, American Idol wannabes, and other celebrities who may be under consideration for future pre-race shows.

Most military bases have their own bands, chorales, glee clubs and soloists who perform the anthem regularly and respectfully at military events. In keeping with its otherwise laudable support of our armed forces, NASCAR should recommend to track owners that all future anthems be performed by uniformed service personnel.

At least they would know when to take their caps off.

The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN. Although we may not always agree with what is said, we do feel it's our duty to give a voice to those who have something relevant to say about the sport of auto racing.